I've been curing my 30" refractory dome oven this week using only seasoned hardwoods & newspaper. The burning wood smells so good... even the neighbors have raved about it (luckily) and I haven't even put food in it yet! And the next day when I pull off the oven doors to get ready for the next fire, it smells so good! But at the end of the daily cures, after the fire has died & the oven begins to cool, I've noticed a slight, peculiar smell coming from the oven. I don't even know where to start describing it other than it's non-organic, almost faintly metallic-like. When I stick my nose in there & take a good whiff, it's stifling... a bit suffocating.

It could be the oven coking - I had this when I was curing my oven, the wood wasn't combusting efficiently due, I assume, to the huge moisture content within the oven chamber. The dome was very black and it smelled like you describe. I think the material used in the construction also smells whilst it is curing too. All disappeared once the oven had been fired to full temperature a couple of times.

Good luck!

p.s. I cured my oven without using a door to let as much moisture escape as possible, it could even be your door curing if it is painted...

It could be the oven coking - I had this when I was curing my oven, the wood wasn't combusting efficiently due, I assume, to the huge moisture content within the oven chamber. The dome was very black and it smelled like you describe. I think the material used in the construction also smells whilst it is curing too. All disappeared once the oven had been fired to full temperature a couple of times.

Good luck!

p.s. I cured my oven without using a door to let as much moisture escape as possible, it could even be your door curing if it is painted...

You know, I suppose it could be the smell of steam. Now that I've had more time to think about it, the smell kind of reminds me of that. Just got a little worried when it took my breath away after sticking my nose in there.

I only put the doors (unpainted, made from some fire resistant material) on when the oven cools to about 200-300 degrees. I thought I read somewhere this was the thing to do during curing to retain the heat longer. Should I leave the doors off all night & let it cool faster?

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